For more than 16 years I wrote a weekly column for the Calgary Sun (usually Saturdays - sometimes Sunday). It also occasionally appeared in other papers. My regular column there has ended and may soon appear elsewhere. For now I'm enjoying the break.

I have also written a regular column for the National Post's "Toronto" Saturday magazine, the London Free Press, the Winnipeg Sun and the Toronto Sun going back to 1993. I have also appeared in the Toronto Star and once was extensively quoted (without payment - thanks for nothing) in the Globe and Mail as a "voice of the West", even though I live in Toronto. My tweets (@stephenlautens) are frequently picked up by the likes of the CBC, Huffington Post and other fine electronic media outlets.

I have recently written two serious legal feature articles for Canadian Lawyer Magazine. My cover story in March, 2015 was on the Justice Lori Douglas case and the Canadian Judicial Council. In September my Canadian Lawyer Magazine cover story was on how the federal judicial appointments process has been hijacked by the Conservative government with the effect of slowing down the already glacial progress in gender and diversity representation.

Before it's demise, Sun News Network had me on as a semi-regular "pundit" to comment on news and current events when they need a liberal punching bag.

This is how I looked when I wrote for the National Post. I was there just long enough to get this hand-carved beauty done - then they too decided to save a few bucks and get rid of the freelance columnists. Now I know why they call the picture at the top of a column a "headstone". I think the drawing captures my inner woodenness.

Speaking of which, one of my own columns appeared in "Chicken Soup for the Father & Son Soul" (May, 2008). Pretty appropriate, eh? I've already cashed my cheque and blown it on a tank of gas, so I'm not getting rich on sales, but I do like the article they picked (page 252 - thanks for asking).

If you click on a year to the right you will see a selection of the 50 or so columns written that year. Sorry they are still in an ugly old format from my previous website. There are more than 250 web pages of columns there, so I had the choice of inconveniencing me or you. Guess what? You lost.

The columns that seem to have tickled readers most are marked with this annoying thing so you can find them more easily if you just have a minute or two to look around. Have a favourite or looking for reprint permission? Let me know.

These columns may be slightly different than the ones that appeared in print or on the the Sun Media website. Occasionally they get "improved" as they pass through several hands on their way into print. The columns here are unedited and exactly as I wrote them, for better or worse. I hope you like them.

Here's one I wrote in 2006 about being radically moderate. It seems appropriate to put it back up..

A CHIP OFF THE OLD (WRITER'S) BLOCK
A collection of my columns in convenient book form (what we used to read before the Internet) came out a couple of years back. Now it's available as an eBook here for a mere $2.99. Also available through iTunes, Kindle, Kobo, NOOK, and Amazon.com.

This is a collection of almost a hundred of my favourite columns about "helpful" bank clerks, "empowered" customer service reps, telemarketers, and otherwise dealing with a world that often refuses to see how little sense it makes.

Plus there's the joys of parenthood and you'll also finally discover the main difference between men and women (hint - it's all about flashlights, home surgery, and how you feel about finding bulk toilet paper on sale).

"I just want to thank you for the chuckles. I will be giggling for days." - T.K., Calgary

"I just had to let you know that I really look forward to your articles. I laughed out loud at today's column." - C.L., Halifax

"Keep on entertaining us, a person can never laugh too often." - F.G., London

THE LAST BLITZKRIEG
Here's my novel that blends fact and fiction about the closing days of World War II into a thriller in the tradition of The Eagle has Landed. The Last Blitzkrieg is my well-recieved foray into the world of speculative historical fiction.

The Russians are at the gates of Berlin. The war is won. Or is it? Even as the Red Army deals Nazi Germany its death blow, Hauptmann Träger, reluctant hero of the Reich, is working his way to the heart of Moscow with the last of Germany’s wonder weapons. The Last Blitzkrieg is a fast-paced thriller woven around real people and actual historical events sometimes more surprising than fiction.

Available now at Smashwords and the iTunes store as an eBook so you can carry me on your iPad, iPhone, Kindle, Kobo or whatever for only $5.99. Read the first few chapters for free - so try before you buy. Available also through iTunes, Amazon and other fine eBook download sites.